Garden Acres Community Park

This was identified as a need for a community park location in the City of Longmont Comprehensive Plan and is reflected in the adopted Parks, Recreation and Trails Masterplan.

Community Parks are larger sites developed for active recreational use.  Existing sites range in size from 20 – 100 acres and provide space for indoor and outdoor recreation facilities such as pools and recreation centers.  These sites are spread across the city and augment the neighborhood park access with larger recreation facilities and gathering places, typically featuring multiple lighted ball and/or multi-use fields, aquatic facilities, playgrounds, multiple sport courts, multiple restrooms and recreation or community centers.

Neighborhood Parks are the basic building block of the system and provide space for close-to-home recreation activities.  Existing sites range in size from under 2 acres to 16 acres. The ideal neighborhood park is central to and easily accessible from the neighborhood.  Sites are often located adjacent to elementary school sites, which can enhance the site’s acreage, and offer convenience to one of the critical user groups, children, and their families.

Nature Area means a designation of public land that is developed to provide access to and enjoyment of important natural, historic, and cultural resources and allow for limited, low impact, and passive outdoor recreational uses that fit the unique natural characteristics of the area. Examples include Dickens Farm Nature Area, Golden Ponds Nature Area, Izaak Walton Nature Area, McIntosh Lake Nature Area, Rogers Grove Nature Area, Golden Ponds, McCall Lake Nature Area, Sandstone Ranch Nature Area, St. Vrain Greenway, Union Reservoir Nature Area, Jim Hamm Nature Area.

Open Space Purchased with Open Space Funds from the 0.2-cent sales tax (per Municipal Code 4.04.130.I) shall serve one or more of the following functions:

i. Preservation of natural areas, wildlife habitat, wetlands, agriculture, and visual corridors.

ii. Link and trails, access to public lakes, streams and other usable open space lands, stream corridors and scenic corridors along existing highways.

iii. Conservation of natural resources, including, but not limited to, forest lands, range lands, agricultural land, aquifer recharge areas, and surface water.

iv. District parks (nature areas) devoted to low-impact recreational uses.

v. Implementing greenways and open space policies or strategies of the city area comprehensive plan.

vi. Urban shaping buffers between or around municipalities or community service areas and buffer zones between residential and nonresidential development.

Once the City of Longmont’s Park System is built out, the intent identified in the Parks, Recreation and Trails Masterplan is that all residences within the City of Longmont would have access to neighborhood parks within ½-mile and access to community parks within 1-mile. Both the Longmont Comprehensive Plan and the Parks, Recreation and Trails Masterplan reference these metrics. NRPA (National Recreation and Park Association) Park Metrics, which is the most comprehensive source of benchmarks and insights for park and recreation agencies, identifies the standard distance to a neighborhood park as ¼ to ½-mile and the standard distance to a community park as 1 to 2 miles.

The distance to the park is determined by utilizing the Network Method, which is measured along pedestrian networks of sidewalks and trails. The closer, ½-mile service area for neighborhood parks is based on the typical walking distance most pedestrians are willing to travel to reach nearby destinations such as a neighborhood parks. The longer, 1-mile service area is based on the distance most people are willing to bike, drive or take transit to destinations with a city-wide draw such as a community park. This distance is a balance between spacing these recreation facilities out and keeping them close enough to not force travel by personal auto.

Per the City of Longmont Parks, Recreation and Trails Masterplan, the Park Land Standard (acres/1,000 residents) was set at 2.5 acres/1,000 residents for neighborhood parks and 4.5 acres/1,000 residents for community parks.

The standards established in the Parks, Recreation and Trails Masterplan are in close alignment with the NRPA Parks Metrics, which recommend a neighborhood park standard of 2.0 acres per 1,000 residents and a community park standard of 5 to 8 acres per 1,000 residents. According to the 2024 inventory of developed parkland and the 2020 census population data, the total park acreage falls slightly below the neighborhood park standard of 2.0 acres per 1,000 residents, missing the target by 0.5 acres per 1,000 residents, or 49.45 acres in total. For community parks, the shortfall is more pronounced, with developed parkland falling 2.0 acres per 1,000 residents below the standard, totaling 196.40 acres under the recommended benchmark.

The development of park land in the City has not managed to keep pace with the population growth that has occurred which will only continue to lower the actual acres/1,000 residents until additional park land is funded to be developed.

• Clark Centennial Community Park, 47.7 developed acres
• Dry Creek Community Park, 23 developed acres, 58 undeveloped acres
• Garden Acres Community Park, 41.6 developed acres
• Quail Campus Community Park, 18 developed acres, 26 undeveloped acres
• Roosevelt Community Park, 19.4 developed acres
• Sandstone Ranch Community Park, 99.4 developed acres, 35.1 undeveloped acres
• Sister’s Property (future community park site, name is a placeholder), 69.3 undeveloped acres.
• Montgomery Farm (future community park site, name is a placeholder), 80 undeveloped acres.

81 acres total, 23 acres were developed during the first phase. 58 acres remain to be developed in the second phase.

City staff (planning, recreation, parks, land program administrator, community services, city manager), surrounding neighbors, St. Vrain Valley School District, community park recreational groups and members of the wider community.

In 2007, initial design input occurred thru: Stakeholder meetings (community members, SVVSD, City staff, recreational groups), Tamales and Talk session for Latino community, comment cards, hotline voice mailbox, on-line survey, email/phone contact with City Project Managers, SVVSD meetings with administration and students via school classes.

Posting of design display boards at: Longmont Recreation Center, Public Library, Senior Center, Centennial Pool, and Silver Creek High School (comment cards were included at each of these sites).  In addition, further public outreach occurred thru Longmont Times-Call. Draft Master plan brought to Parks and Recreation Advisory Board as an information item.

Formal City Council approval of the master plan was given on November 18, 2008.

In January 2024 a community meeting was held at Altona Middle School to inform the public about the upcoming construction of synthetic turf, sports lighting, and resilient St Vrain fill material borrow area.

Yes, once this project is funded and approved by City Council to move forward, public engagement will occur to solicit feedback from the community regarding the Phase 2 park design.

No, the future park west of Mountain Drive in the West Grange Subdivision has not been master planned/designed to date.

This site is the future site for Phase 2 of the master planned Dry Creek Community Park.  Construction of this phase will require that the prairie dogs be removed from the site. Once complete, prairie dogs would not be compatible with the features of the park due damage that prairie dogs can cause by burrowing into and eating landscaping as well the safety issues created by burrows being in active recreational areas.

In accordance with the City’s Wildlife Management Plan, if prairie dogs are not compatible with a property’s intended use, the preferred method of management is to relocate the prairie dogs.

Relocation sites are uncommon, especially one of adequate size to accommodate as many prairie dogs as possible that exist on the property. This receiving site is currently the only know site in the State.  It is also unknown how much longer the receiving site will continue to accept them. The City wants to take advantage of this opportunity while possible. If the City waited to relocate the prairie dogs closer to when construction of Phase 2 is to happen, it is very possible that there wouldn’t be any relocation sites available, and all the prairie dogs would have to be euthanized.

The City has 445 acres of constructed neighborhood and community parks. There are approximately 1843 acres of natural lands on Open Space and nature areas as well as about 20 miles of greenways. On these natural lands, there are approximately 100 acres of prairie dog habitat that are not under consideration for removal.

As stated in the response to question 1 above, prairie dogs would not be compatible with park amenities. A barrier would need to be installed around any prairie dog colony to aid in preventing them from migrating into areas they could not be in. The cost would be approximately $64 per linear to install a barrier around the perimeter. No barrier is 100% effective so there would end up being more prairie dogs that would need to be euthanized that escape the barrier. This would also result in additional cost for the euthanization.

The prairie dogs will be relocated to the U.S. Army Pueblo Chemical Depot in Pueblo, Colorado.  This 23,000-acre site is one of two remaining sites in the country that stores the nation’s remaining chemical stockpile and destroys chemical weapons material. Historically, the site was home to black-tailed prairie dogs but a plague event in 2015-16 significantly decreased the population.

Starting in 2019, the base’s natural resources manager has received prairie dogs from other locations to restore the historic populations that add to the biodiversity of the short-grass prairie habitat on the base. Once a large enough colony is established, the base hopes to reintroduce the Federally endangered black-footed ferret.

The Pueblo Depot will begin accepting prairie dogs on July 29. Active trapping conducted by the City’s hired contractor began July 30. The contractor finished trapping on August 21 and relocated a total of 604 prairie dogs. Afterwards, an experienced private prairie dog relocator offered to volunteer their services to continue trapping and relocating any remaining prairie dogs. They began trapping on September 22 and finished trapping due the permit ending on October 29. The volunteer relocated an additional 102 prairie dogs for a total of 706 prairie dogs. As is usual for any relocation, some prairie dogs were not able to be trapped.  Remaining prairie dogs will be euthanized in their burrows using carbon monoxide.  This will take approximately 1-2 weeks. Afterwards, the City will monitor the site at least monthly and euthanize with carbon monoxide any prairie dogs that remain or migrate onto the property

The City has contracted with Smith Environmental & Engineering. Smith has extensive experience relocating prairie dogs. An experienced private prairie dog relocator is also volunteering their time to provide additional relocation efforts in October.

The total cost for the relocation is $75,121.  The neighboring West Grange HOA is additionally paying $1,000 for the relocation of prairie dogs on adjacent HOA property.

The site the prairie dogs are being relocated to does not accept prairie dogs until the end of July which is after pup season so there may end up being more prairie dogs on site to relocate and potentially then more that can’t be trapped and would have to be euthanized. Also, the City needs to seed the areas that the prairie dogs were removed from to aid with soil stabilization and provide competition to noxious weeds that will no longer be clipped by the prairie dogs. Since most of the site does not have any irrigation, the City will do what is called a dormant seeding this winter to take advantage of any natural precipitation that may occur through spring of next year. Then once seed starts to germinate, there can’t be any prairie dogs around that would graze on the seedlings and kill them. The final goal for the seeding is to restore the site with native grasses and forbs.

Prairie dog colonies contribute to an ecosystem type that benefits certain species of wildlife but there are other species of wildlife that do not utilize prairie dog colonies. Just like some species prefer forests rather grasslands, a prairie dog colony is not the preferred habitat of all species.

The current land at this location where there were prairie dogs is infested mostly with invasive weeds like Canada thistle, field bindweed, kochia, and hoary cress. The weeds provide little habitat quality. Other portions of the site have little ground cover to stabilize soil due to overgrazing of vegetation by prairie dogs so that topsoil is lost to wind erosion. The City will be establishing native grasses and forbs after the removal of the prairie dogs which will provide habitat for other wildlife that may not have utilized a prairie dog colony. In this way, the ecosystem is not being harmed, it is being changed to a different ecosystem type.

a. City of Longmont Permit

The City of Longmont requires a permit for relocating prairie dogs to comply with their prairie dog regulations. The contractor will work with Longmont to obtain the necessary permit for prairie dog removal.

b. Colorado Parks and Wildlife Permit

A permit is required from Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) for relocating prairie dogs. The contractor will work with the City of Longmont and the US Fish and Wildlife Service to obtain a CPW permit.

c. Population Estimate

Both the City of Longmont permit and the CPW permit application require a population estimate for prairie dog colonies that are to be relocated. This information also allows for accurate planning and preparation of the release site. The contractor will complete a population estimate.

d. Coterie Identification

Within the greater colony, prairie dogs live in family groups called coteries. To reduce mortality caused by the relocation process, prairie dogs need to be moved as a family unit. Males are very territorial, so this will reduce hostility between males. The contractor will identify and map the coteries within the colony so that family units can be moved together. Each coterie will be identified by a number.

e. Burrowing Owl Surveys

All prairie dog colonies, active or inactive, provide potential habitat for the Burrowing Owl. The Burrowing Owl nests in Colorado from mid-March through October each year. If fumigation activities are proposed during the nesting season, Burrowing Owl surveys must be completed. Burrowing Owl surveys will be completed prior to fumigation.

f. Burrow Dusting

CPW requires that all prairie dog burrows at the capture site be treated with Delta Dust (Deltamerthrine – EPA Reg.#432-772) one week prior to trapping. SMITH’s licensed applicators will dust the burrows one week prior to trapping activities.

g. Live Trapping

The contractor will utilize up to 440 Tomahawk live-traps baited with sweetened rolled oats to capture prairie dogs. The trapping period will include three days of pre-baiting during which prairie dogs are allowed to acclimate to the traps, followed by seven days of live trapping. Traps will be activated and monitored weekdays between 0800 and 1700 hours. Captured prairie dogs will be removed from the trapping field within four hours of capture and housed in their cages in a protected area on site until the daily trapping period is complete. All prairie dogs will be transported to the release site the day of capture or housed up to four nights in a CPW approved facility. If the temperature is below 32° F or above 75°, prairie dogs will be moved to a protected area within 1.5 hours of capture. Each captured prairie dog will be assessed by a trained wildlife technician and treated for fleas with Pyranha Insecticide (Pymethrin – EPA Reg. #21165-1). The sex, coterie and approximate age of each prairie dog will be recorded. Any non-target animals that are trapped will be released immediately. Many factors contribute to the success of a trapping effort. Weather plays a significant role in prairie dog capture success. Black-tailed prairie dogs are diurnal and do not hibernate, but they have extremely poor vision in low light. As a result, they are less active on cloudy days, and they may remain in their burrows for several consecutive days during inclement weather. Human disturbance can also decrease the success of a trapping effort. When prairie dogs encounter what they perceive to be a threat, an alarm call is sounded, and individuals retreat into their burrows. A pedestrian walking on a sidewalk, a vehicle driving through the site, or members of a survey crew could all cause prairie dogs to move underground, thereby limiting capture time. For these reasons, the contractor monitors trapping areas from a distance using binoculars and removes captured prairie dogs from the field only every few hours.

g. Live Transport

Prairie dogs will be transported to the release site in a covered pickup truck bed or covered trailer. Prairie dogs will remain in their traps during transport. The US Fish and Wildlife Service will be responsible for the release of the prairie dogs at the chemical depot. The contractor will transfer the prairie dogs to them at the release site or an agreed upon location near Pueblo.

h. Fumigation

Live-trapping projects do not capture 100% of the population; there are always a proportion of individuals that are not catchable. Because of this, the contractor will fumigate all burrows within the project area using pressurized carbon monoxide produced by a machine called a PERC to exterminate any remaining prairie dogs after the trapping period. Carbon monoxide is considered the most humane method of euthanizing prairie dogs in their burrows compared to other poisons. The PERC utilizes compressed carbon monoxide collected from a small internal combustion engine. Upon collection, the carbon monoxide is cooled and compressed for distribution into burrows. The contractor will utilize this machine with four hoses to fill burrows with carbon monoxide.  Once a burrow is filled with the gas, it is plugged with soil whereby all animals in the burrow should succumb to the gas. After the initial treatment, the contractor will perform two follow-up inspections and re-treat all open burrows found during that time. Pressurized exhaust can only be used on burrows located 100 feet or more from any habitable structure due to Colorado Department of Agriculture regulations. All burrows requiring treatment within 100 feet of a structure will be treated with carbon monoxide producing cartridges, which are not regulated against such use. The fumigation consists of one initial treatment and two follow-up treatments. However, prairie dogs can survive all three treatments or migrate onto the site from nearby properties. In that case, the City will be monitoring the site at least monthly to control any prairie dogs that remain or migrate onto the property.

There has not been any design that has occurred for Dry Creek Community Park Phase 2 beyond the masterplan.

Currently this phase is unfunded in the adopted Capital Improvement Program budget. The timeframe is to-be-determined due to a lack of available funding.

Yes, there will be a community-wide outreach to solicit input/feedback on the Phase 2 park design prior to construction once the project is funded and approved to move forward by City Council.

The fields did not perform well as the natural turf did not thrive due to high salinity soils and high groundwater. The City received many requests to improve performance of the surface of the fields.  The result was to invest in synthetic turf which will result in maximizing the playability of the fields throughout the year and best meet the need of our sport community.

In the Mountain West and Colorado Front Range, synthetic turf temperatures on sunny, calm days have been typically measured at 20-40 degrees above the ambient temperature at points directly on the turf or near the surface. The higher above the surface, the lower the temperature. If wind is present, the temperature will also be lower. These temperatures could prompt changes in programming during the hottest months spanning mid-July to mid-September during the hottest parts of the day. The remaining 9-10 months will benefit from the temperature of the turf as the synthetic turf doesn’t freeze hard like natural turf and stays more pliable all winter.

An irrigation system with quick couplers is installed for cleaning the fields. Additionally, the utilized sand infill has antibacterial coating.

The fields will be spot cleaned on an as-needed basis. This is a standard practice for cleaning synthetic turf fields.

• Turf: Worldwide Turf Allsport Ultra tufted turf
• Pad: Enplast ShockDrain 580
• Fill: UniWest OptiFILL+ (antimicrobial coated turf sand)
• Turf Seam Adhesive: Mapei Ultrabond TurfPU 2K
• Turf Tape: Mapei Ultrabond Turf Tape

No, the bill specifically excludes athletic playing fields from the restrictions on artificial turf installation.

• The turf was tested for fluorine content. The results shows that the fluorine content in the TenCate XP Fiber material was below the detection limit of 1.0 ppm. This suggests that the material either does not contain fluorine or contains it in such a low amount that it is below the threshold of detection for this test method. A copy of this test is available upon request.
• TenCate is a zero-waste field solution. Each field is assigned a reference number which follows it throughout the entire processing cycle at end of life.  The turf is initially processed at the TenCate Turf Recycling Solutions facility; once this processing is complete, a certificate is issued for the customer. The processed turf is then assigned a lot number and transported to the Advanced Recycling facility. Once the turf has gone through the advanced recycling process, confirmation is sent to TenCate Turf Recycling Solutions and shared with the customer. Turf processing rate is $0.15/sq.ft. plus the cost of freight. There are roughly 252,670 s.f. of turf installed.
• Infill material consists of coated sand in lieu of rubber infill. Sand infill generally offers several environmental benefits over rubber infill, including reduced chemical exposure, lower heat retention and better end-of-life management. Coating provides antibacterial qualities and reduces abrasiveness.
• The project is following all local and federal regulations regarding sustainable site development.
  • Construction permits acquired for the project include:
    • Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment CDPS (Colorado Discharge Permit System) COR400000 Construction Stormwater Discharge Permit (a construction stormwater permit that allows the discharge of stormwater associated with construction activities in Colorado)
    • City of Longmont SCAP (Stormwater Construction Activity Permit, which is required for all activities that disturb one or more acres of land)
    • City of Longmont Floodplain Development Permit (permit to ensure that proposed development projects meet the requirements of the FEMA National Flood Insurance Program and the City of Longmont floodplain regulations)
    • FEMA No-rise Certification (stipulates NO impact/NO changes to the base flood elevations, regulatory floodway elevation, or regulatory floodway widths at the new cross-sections and at all existing cross-sections anywhere in the model)
    • City of Longmont Electrical Permit (to ensure that electrical work meets safety codes and standards)

Community parks emphasize active recreation, whereas nature areas prioritize wildlife habitat conservation and low-impact, passive activities.  However, in all projects, the city takes steps to minimize impacts on wildlife:

• A survey for nesting birds was conducted before construction began.
• Light fixtures near wetlands are shielded to limit exposure within the wildlife corridor. The lights being installed at Dry Creek are manufactured by Musco Lighting and are designed to put the light specifically on the field while having minimal spill around it. The lights are intentionally designed to preserve as much darkness as possible while providing a safe playing environment.
• Reducing light temperature was considered but found infeasible.

The lighting is dark sky compliant with full cut off fixtures.

Lights are available for use by any user group for a fee.  The policy regarding light use is managed in the field rental permit and require lights to be off by 11 pm.

If there is no activity occurring, there should be no reason for the lights to be on.

While light use will vary by season (earlier sunset will mean more use of lights), most youth activity will conclude no later than 9 pm on weeknights, while adult activity may extend typically until 10 pm. Based on use at other parks, weeknights will typically see more use of lights than weekends, though this may fluctuate depending upon game or tournament use as opposed to practice.

Access to the St. Vrain Valley School District facilities have been inconsistent and limited. The investment into the City’s only synthetic turf space was made to ensure the community has adequate quality sports field space. Lighting of these fields for maximum utilization as a primary driver in meeting community sports demand. As a community park, lighted field space is integral in all sports field spaces. Since 2008, the population of Longmont has increased significantly. Dry Creek Park is the only community park serving residents in Southwest Longmont.

FACILITY RULES:

• No event may begin prior to:
  • 9:00 AM January to April and October to December or
  • 8:00 AM May to September.
  • All events must be completed (lights out) by 11:00 PM.
• The use of alcoholic beverages in the Facility is prohibited.
• Glass bottles are not allowed in any City of Longmont park.
• Overnight parking or camping in the Facility parking lots is prohibited.
  • Only authorized vehicles will be allowed inside the complex area. Authorized vehicles are City vehicles, maintenance vehicles, and emergency vehicles.

For athletic field rentals, interested parties should contact the Sports Office at 303-774-3527 or sports@longmontcolorado.gov. They have information packets available for both short term (one-time events) and long term (league) rentals.

The lights are reserved per the reservation and not based on a participant count.

Current field space allocations do not meet the demand of user groups. Sandstone Ranch, the City’s primary community park for sports, is allocated to the point of affecting turf health. Because demand is so great, all areas of the sports complex fields are used during March through November, not allowing appropriate time for the turf to heal. Recreation consistently turns away requests for field space as the inventory of athletic fields is not meeting demand.

The greatest deficiency in demand comes from adult soccer, youth tackle/flag football, youth lacrosse, and adult ultimate disc user groups seeking access for games and practice space. There are also locally based youth soccer teams that have sought out space in other communities as Longmont’s resources could not accommodate their needs. This demand consists of teams seeking consistent practice space to clubs seeking space for tournaments and alternate game locations across all sports.

A community information meeting regarding the new fields and sports lighting occurred at Altona Middle School on Wednesday, January 10, 2024, from 6:00 pm – 8:30 pm. Aside from that public engagement, there was not any further polling.

The top layer of the turf has a warranty of 8 years but can last 10 or more years if maintained properly. The City has planned for turf (top layer) replacement in 10 years, which will first show up in the 5-Year CIP in 2029 and will project the funds needed in 2034 for replacement. The padding that is below the turf layer has a 25-year warranty; the City will plan for padding replacement as soon as 2049. With properly allocated resources and maintenance practices, the benefit of the field outweighs the additional costs that would be incurred with natural turf over the same period while providing a superior product for the community.

The field is expected to be used year-round, even in colder winter months to meet the community demand. Local user groups are requesting field space during these months to prepare for off-season tournaments held in warmer climates. Lights will allow for significantly more use than the effective daylight times, which decrease to almost none on weeknights in November through February, despite community demand.

This park improvement is funded and approved by City Council. It is expected that there will be programming and rentals at the field space consistently throughout the standard sports seasons, with some anticipated reduction in use during the winter months. The operation of the park will remain consistent with existing policies, including the use of lights. The park was designed to accommodate the parking needs of the current field space, which is not changing with the improvement to synthetic turf from natural turf. The only change anticipated is the ability to accommodate more community sports needs while limiting the impact on resources while also addressing an underserved area of Longmont.

Lacrosse is one sports program that will significantly benefit from the synthetic field space. Due to the smaller goal size, the specific wear patterns on natural turf are highly impactful in the goals areas. As with all sports field rentals, the costs of cleanup and maintenance is built into the rental fees and paid by the user groups.

Field allocations would be generally granted out seasonally with priority given to recognized locally based youth and adult sports organizations. Sports field space would be allocated based on need determined by user requests through the City of Longmont Recreation field rental procedure. Every effort would be made to provide space as available to groups while also maximizing the use through thoughtful scheduling. As a year-round field space, no seasonal limitation would be in place for sports provided rentable space is available. Sports such as soccer, football (flag and tackle), lacrosse, ultimate, rugby, or any other activity that could be performed on a broad flat open space.

In 2007, initial design input occurred thru: Stakeholder meetings (community members, SVVSD, City staff, recreational groups), Tamales and Talk session for Latino community, comment cards, hotline voice mailbox, on-line survey, email/phone contact with City Project Managers, SVVSD meetings with administration and students via school classes. Posting of design display boards at: Longmont Recreation Center, Public Library, Senior Center, Centennial Pool, and Silver Creek High School (comment cards were included at each of these sites). In addition, further public outreach occurred thru Longmont Times-Call.  Draft Master plan brought to Parks and Recreation Advisory Board as an information item. Formal City Council approval of the master plan was given on November 18, 2008.

A community meeting was held at Altona Middle School on Wednesday, January 10, 2024, from 6:00pm – 8:30pm to inform the public about the upcoming construction of synthetic turf, sports lighting, and resilient St Vrain fill material borrow area.

Yes, a public meeting was held at Altona Middle School on Wednesday, January 10, 2024, from 6:00 pm – 8:30 pm.

A mailer was sent out to all residential addresses within a quarter mile of the park (280 addresses). The addresses were generated by the Boulder County Assessor’s Office website.

In comparison to the Notice Distance Requirements for development review procedures required by City of Longmont Municipal Code, Table 15.02.040(2), the distance of ¼ mile (1,320 feet) exceeds the 1,000-foot minimum notification distance required by the code. When engaging public for announcements and feedback, the parks department typically utilizes a ¼-mile radius, but this can vary depending on surrounding neighborhood configurations, type of the project, purpose of engagement.

The meeting was focused on the proposed sports field lighting and provided an opportunity for the community to ask questions about the new synthetic turf fields, operating hours for the new sports fields and to bring awareness of the upcoming relocation of material at the existing sledding hill.

Yes, the plan is to put another recreation initiative on the ballot in coming elections, logistics of that effort TBD.

This park is not currently included in the 5-year Capital Improvement Program. It will be added to the 5-year plan when funding is projected to become available.

Yes, the City will solicit community feedback for the park design once it is funded and approved to move forward.

After the prairie dogs are relocated, the City will be seeding denude areas with a native seed mix and conducting weed control.

Feedback from the community will be solicited when the future park has been funded and approved to move forward by City Council.

10 acres

The City’s CIP DRN039 – RSVP Izaak Walton Reach 2 (Boston Ave to Sunset Street) will be exporting dirt from the unofficial sledding hill located on the south side of the Dry Creek Community Park parking lot. The project will also import dirt to reconstruct the sledding hill and make the site whole again. Access to the borrow material will be through the parking lot. The Army Corps of Engineers will be managing this project with support from the City.

It is anticipated that construction will start beginning of 2025. The relocation of the borrow material will occur shortly thereafter.